The present invention is directed generally to a business form and, more particularly to a form for use in collecting sample material, such as organic sample material, and forwarding it to a laboratory for analysis.
Analysis of the organic matter is often conducted at locations remote from the sampling site. By way of example, techniques used to track the lineage of purebred animals involve obtaining hair or blood samples from an animal, then mailing the samples to a laboratory for DNA analysis. In a conventional sampling approach, the sample is packed in a vial labelled with salient information about the sample. The vials, however, tended to be fragile and bulky, thus making them susceptible to being damaged in transit, thereby subjecting the samples to contamination. The advent of accurate DNA analysis on hair samples has made possible alternative methods of packaging and shipping such samples. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,582,298 (hereinafter the ""298 patent), issued to Clayton, teaches sampling kit forms for hair samples that alleviate the shortcomings of the conventional vial-based approach. The business form of the ""298 patent includes a sampling kit having a foldable sheet substrate with die cut openings and a transparent cover over the opening, and an adhesive area on the sheet adjacent the opening. A removable release liner covers the layer of adhesive, while a line of weakening located in the sheet extends through the adhesive area in the general direction of the opening. The material to be sampled may be adhered to the adhesive area after removal of the release liner so that the material extends over the opening. The sheet is then folded upon itself on the line of weakening and held folded in this position by the adhesive.
While the kit of the ""298 patent functions well, the varying thickness across the form width hampers its use in some printers. For example, when multiple forms are superimposed one on top of another for cut-sheet applications, such as those where individual forms are loaded into a cut-sheet printer tray or cartridge (as found on a conventional desktop printer), the greater thickness of the portions with adhesive and overlaid labels produces an uneven, or leaning, stack. This can limit the number of forms stackable into the printer cartridge, thereby reducing the effectiveness of an otherwise automated process. Similar difficulties exist for printers that accept continuous web sheets, such as Z-fold webs or continuous rolls, examples of which include impact dot matrix, train, band and daisy wheel printers, as well as non-impact continuous laser printers and thermal transfer printers. The increased volume and decreased symmetry also make handling and transporting large quantities of the forms more cumbersome. Additionally, the inclusion of transparent windows leads to relatively complex construction of the kit, increasing manufacturing costs.
Accordingly, there is a need for a sampling kit form for collecting samples of organic matter in which the form may be simply manufactured, and in which the form may be printed with various types of printers.
These needs are met by the sampling kit form of the present invention, which is directed to a kit for collecting sample material, such as organic sample material. The kit containing the organic sample material can be conveniently handled and conveyed to a laboratory for analysis. According to one aspect of the present invention, a sampling kit form for organic material is disclosed. The sampling kit form is made up of a sheet that can accept printed indicia on one or both of its surfaces. The sheet in turn is made up of a first ply, a second ply, an adhesive and a release coating. Both the adhesive and the release coating are disposed between the inner surfaces of the first and second plies. One or more fold lines are disposed between opposing edges of the sheet. The first ply is defined by a first ply outer surface, a first ply inner surface and a die cut defining a coplanar removable inset portion. The second ply is stackably coupled to the first ply such that corresponding edges of the first and second plies are substantially aligned. As used in conjunction with the present disclosure, the term xe2x80x9csubstantiallyxe2x80x9d refers to an arrangement of elements or features that, while in theory would be expected to exhibit exact correspondence or behavior, may, in practice embody something slightly less than exact. The second ply is defined by outer and inner surfaces, the latter of which faces the first ply inner surface. Upon removal of the inset portion, at least a portion of the second ply inner surface is exposed to accept the organic material thereon. After adhesively placing the organic material on part of the exposed second ply inner surface, the sheet can be folded along the one or more fold lines to protect the organic material within.
Optionally, the sampling kit form may be adapted to be suitable as a mailer intermediate. In this arrangement, each ply preferably has perforation lines (such as lines of weakness) that define marginal tear strips disposed around the form""s periphery. The sampling kit form may also include die cuts around at least a portion of the periphery of the first and second plies. These die cuts define liner pieces that can be removed to expose adhesive disposed underneath. Upon removal of these liner pieces, the form may be folded, then sealed with the exposed adhesive. Once the mailed form is delivered, the recipient may tear away the marginal tear strips at their respective perforations to open the mailer.
Moreover, the first and second plies, as well as the adhesive and the release coatings, are disposed relative to one another such that a stacking surface defined by the sheet is substantially free of undulation, thereby improving the resistance of a stack of sheets to leaning. This is especially beneficial when fed into a conventional cut-sheet desktop printer. The sampling kit form can further include a line of weakness disposed between opposing edges of the sheet such that a detachable postcard connected to the sheet along the line of weakness is removable.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a sampling kit form for organic material is disclosed. The sampling kit form is made from a substantially rectangular sheet with opposing planar surfaces. The sheet includes a first ply, a second ply coextensively laminated to the first ply with an adhesive, one or more fold lines each disposed between opposing edges of the sheet, and a detachable postcard connected to one edge of the sheet along a line of weakness in one or both plies. A removable inset portion is defined by a die cut in the first ply so that when the inset portion is removed, at least a portion of the adhesive on the second ply is exposed such that the adhesive coating portion facilitates adhesion of the organic sample. The outer surface of the first and second plies are configured to accept printed indicia. Preferably, the organic material is hair, such as human or animal hair, and is placed on the second ply inner surface such that the roots of the hair do not contact any of the adhesive, thus preventing. contaminants that may be present in the adhesive from tainting the hair sample. The placement of the adhesive and release coating, as well as the configuration of the two plies, promotes a substantially uniform thickness across a significant portion of the sheet. This avoids leaning problems when numerous sheets are stacked, such as when preparing the stack for printing or shipping. As used in the present context, the term xe2x80x9csignificantxe2x80x9d implies that enough of the form surface is sufficiently undulation-free, even though there are discrete sections where slight thickness variations may be present (most notably in the region defined by the inset portion), to prevent leaning stacks.
Optionally, the second ply inner surface of the sampling kit further comprises a release coating portion disposed across at least one of the fold lines from the adhesive coating portion. This allows the hair placed onto the adhesive coating portion to be protectively sandwiched between the adhesive and the release coating when the sheet is folded along that fold line. Furthermore, the sheet is configured to be folded along additional fold lines such that it can be repeatedly folded and fit into a storage container that has at least one dimension smaller than that of the unfolded sheet. Preferably, the printed indicia that can be placed on the outer surfaces of the sheet is instructional information, such as how to operate the kit form, mailing instructions or the like. The second ply inner surface can further comprise additional release coating portions. The first ply inner surface can further comprise an adhesive coating portion in removable contact with one of the additional release coating portions of the second ply inner surface to facilitate removal of the inset portion. Preferably, at least a portion of the first and second plies are permanently bonded to one another to produce the sheet, and that this portion extends around substantially the entire periphery of the sheet, at or near the sheet edges so that the sheet edges will not fray or otherwise separate. As with the previous aspect of the invention wherein the form is adapted to be a mailer intermediate, marginal tear strips may extend beyond the permanently bonded periphery of the sheet. Within these marginal tear strips, the two plies can have die cuts that define removable liner pieces. These die cuts define liner pieces that can be removed to expose adhesive disposed underneath. Upon removal of these liner pieces, the mailer intermediate may be folded, then sealed using the exposed adhesive. Once the mailer is delivered, the recipient may tear away the marginal tear strips at their respective perforations to open the mailer.
According to another aspect of the present invention, a sampling kit form for hair samples is disclosed. The sampling kit form is made up of a substantially rectangular sheet defining opposing planar surfaces. The sheet includes one or more fold lines each disposed between opposing lateral edges of the sheet, a first ply, a second ply and a detachable postcard connected by a line of weakness, such as perforations in the sheet. The first ply is defined by a first ply outer surface, a first ply inner surface, and a die cut substantially circumscribing a removable inset portion. The inner surface of the first ply has a release coating portion. The second ply is coextensively laminated to the first ply, and is defined by an outer surface and an inner surface, the latter of which includes both an adhesive coating portion and a release coating portion disposed thereon. Upon removal of the inset portion from the die cut, the hair sample may be adhered to the adhesive coating on the second ply. The release coating portion of the second ply is situated across at least one of the laterally extending fold lines from the adhesive coating portion such that, upon adhesion of the hair onto the adhesive coating portion and subsequent folding of the sheet along the fold line, the hair is securely contained within the sheet between the adhesive coating portion and the release coating portion of the second ply. Both the first and second ply outer surfaces are configured to accept printed indicia, such as that from a conventional desktop printer. The first ply and the second are disposed relative to one another such that a significant portion of a stacking surface defined by the outer surface of the first ply is substantially free of undulation, thereby promoting lean-free stacking.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a method of packaging an organic material sample is disclosed. The method includes configuring a sampling kit form to include a sheet that can accept printed indicia on at least one of its surfaces, removing an inset portion defined by a die cut from one of the plies making up the sheet to expose at least a portion of an adhesive that is situated between the sheet plies, placing an organic material sample on the exposed adhesive and folding the sheet along at least one fold line so that the sample is disposed between the adhesive and a release coating that is also situated between the sheet plies. The sheet includes a first ply with outer and inner surfaces and a die cut defining a removable inset portion, a second ply (also with outer and inner surfaces) stackably coupled to the first ply such that the corresponding edges of the two plies are substantially aligned and that the inner surfaces of the two plies face each other. Upon adhesive placement of the organic material on the second ply inner surface, the sheet can be folded along the fold line to protect the organic material within the folded sheet.
Optionally, the method includes the additional step of removing a detachably connected postcard from the sheet. In addition, instructional information can be printed on at least one of the sheet surfaces prior to removing the inset portion. Furthermore, a plurality of sheets can be stacked and placed in operative response to an automated printing device prior to removing the inset portion. The stack does not lean due to the relative lack of surface undulations and resultant generally planar stacking surface. Preferably, either a cut-sheet printer or a continuous-feed printer is used to perform the step of printing instructional information on the sheet. Examples of cut-sheet printers include desktop units, such as laser and ink-jet printers. Examples of continuous-feed printers include impact devices such as dot matrix, band, train and daisywheel printers, and non-impact devices such as laser or thermal transfer printers.
According to still another aspect of the present invention, a method of making an organic material sampling kit form is disclosed. The form is made from a multi-ply sheet that includes a first ply, a second ply coupled to the first ply such that corresponding edges of the first and second plies are substantially aligned, an adhesive disposed between at least a portion of the inner surfaces of the first and second plies, and a release coating disposed between at least a portion of the first and second ply inner surfaces. At least a portion of the adhesive between the plies is to facilitate adhesive contact between the second ply inner surface and the organic material. The method includes forming a sheet such that opposing planar surfaces of the sheet exhibit substantial uniformity of thickness along at least one of the sheet""s lateral or longitudinal dimensions to establish substantially undulation-free construction across that dimension, forming a die cut in the first ply to define a removable inset portion therein such that, upon removal of the inset portion, at least a portion of the second ply inner surface and adhesive is exposed to accept a sample of organic material, and placing one or more fold lines between opposing edges of the sheet such that, upon placement of the organic material on the adhesive, the sheet can be folded along the one or more fold lines to protect the organic material within the folded sheet.
Optionally, an additional step includes placing printed indicia on at least one surface of the sheet. Such printed indicia can be placed on the sheet surface(s) by a conventional automated printing device. In addition, a plurality of sheets can be placed into the printer tray to form a stack therein, where the uniformity of thickness of the sheets prevents the stack from leaning. Moreover, the printer tray can accept either a continuous roll of the sheets, or individually cut sheets. Moreover, the one or more fold lines in the sheets may be perforate. As with the previous aspects of the invention, the two plies making up the form can have die cuts that define removable liner pieces. Similarly, each ply can also have perforation lines that define tear strips such that the form can be used as a mailer.